Phils tally 14 hits, turn triple play to topple SD

SAN DIEGO -- Tommy Joseph's pinch-hit RBI in the top of the seventh inning pushed the Phillies to a 6-5 win over the Padres, in a Sunday rubber match in which Maikel Franco started the first triple play in Petco Park history. Philadelphia tallied 14 hits for the sixth time this season, with seven coming in the fourth inning against San Diego starter Jarred Cosart.
"It's a beautiful thing, huh?" Franco said about the triple play. "Oh, I like it."
Jerad Eickhoff allowed only five hits over his six innings, but two of those hits were of the home run variety, accounting for three of the four earned runs the right-hander surrendered. Eickhoff struck out five batters without issuing a walk on 98 pitches.
Cosart threw five innings and allowed five earned runs. Most of the damage came when he allowed five consecutive two-out hits in the fourth inning, but Odúbel Herrera also homered against him in the first. The 26-year-old may take solace in the fact that he didn't walk a batter for the first time this season, but he still surrendered 10 hits.
"I don't remember the last game I have not walked somebody," Cosart said after the game. "I really can't tell you that off the top of my head. We'd talked about this being a process when I got over here. There's a lot of stuff that [pitching coach Darren] Balsley and I wanted to accomplish.
"No. 1 was learning how to utilize the cut on my fastball, and for the most part I think I'm in a pretty good comfort zone with that right now."
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Franco to Hernandez to Joseph: Phillies right-hander Edubray Ramos found himself in trouble in the seventh inning when he walked Derek Norris and José Rondón to start the inning. But then Jabari Blash hit a grounder to Phillies third baseman Franco, who stepped on third base to begin the 5-4-3 triple play, the Phillies' first since Aug. 23, 2009, when Eric Bruntlett had an unassisted triple play against the Mets at Citi Field.
"I've told these guys a couple of times: I thought I would hit into one before I would be on the successful end of one," first baseman Joseph said. "That's pretty awesome, needless to say." More

Short and sweet: While Ryan Schimpf's two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth was the shortest in Petco Park this season -- an estimated 330 feet according to Statcast™ -- it counted the same as the longest, and helped the Padres erase a four-run deficit and tie the game at 5. Schimpf's .333 isolated power is the best in baseball among players with at least 60 plate appearances.
"I was just up there trying to battle and do something to get on or drive the run in," Schimpf said. "Just up there battling, trying not to go down. He hung a breaking ball in there, and just got enough of it to get out."

Seven in the fourth: The Phillies' seven hits in the fourth inning, scoring four runs were their most hits in a single inning since July 31, 2015, when they had seven in the fifth inning against Atlanta. It spotted Eickhoff a 5-1 lead. Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz each got hits in the inning. The veterans have been hitting the ball better recently, despite limited playing time. More >
"That's why Howie's playing," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "Like I said, I tell everybody, you want to play you've got to hit. Howie's swinging the bat well. So is Chooch."

Rookie mistake: Defense has been questionable for the Padres of late, and that was the case again Sunday, with San Diego making three errors, including a crucial throwing error in the top of the seventh by rookie shortstop Jose Rondon. The 22-year-old fielded a ground ball from César Hernández and promptly fired the ball over Wil Myers' head at first base, with the ball going out of play and allowing Hernandez to reach second. Hernandez would come around to score and reclaim the lead for the Phillies.
"Dug a little bit of a hole today. Defense was, sloppy, probably the best descriptor of it," said Padres manager Andy Green. "Cost us a couple times pretty dearly." More >

QUOTABLE
"If they ask me to I would because I really owe them one." -- Ramos, on if he owes Franco, Hernandez and Joseph dinner for bailing him out of a jam in the seventh with their triple play
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
The triple play turned by the Phillies in the seventh inning was the first in Petco Park history and the 32nd in Phillies history.
WHAT'S NEXT
Phillies: The Phillies face a former friend in Monday night's series opener against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium at 10:10 p.m. ET. It will be their first time facing Chase Utley since they traded him to Los Angeles in August 2015. Utley is the greatest second baseman in franchise history, having played for the Phillies from 2003-15.
Padres: After an off-day Monday, the Padres begin a stretch of 16-straight games, starting with a three-game series against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. Luis Perdomo will start on Tuesday, after throwing a career-high 113 pitches in his last outing vs. the Brewers. First pitch is at 4:05 p.m. PT..
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